ROAD KILL

by Richard Pettifer

Short Film
Email: [email protected]

A family of three are returning from a visit to a National Park, when they come across a body lying on the road. Running time: Approx 10 minutes (10 pages long) Budget required: Very minimal

ROAD KILL




Written by
 
R. Pettifer


Richard Pettifer
(03) 9329 0710
[email protected]

ROAD KILL

FADE IN:

EXT. NATIONAL PARK ROAD - EVENING

A winding road in a mountain National Park, somewhere in Australia.  After a scorching hot summer’s day in which visitors have colonized the park, the evening sees the birds returning to their nests, and the animals beginning to reclaim the land for the night-time.

A family - mother, father and young girl of about 8 years - drive the narrow road down the mountain.  Their 1996 Holden Commodore is lonely against the nature that begins to swirl around it.

The mother, about 40, is a middle-class Australian mum, complete with passive aggressiveness and a squeaky, fingernails-on-a-chalkboard voice.  She appears agitated.  The father, also about 40, is a self-assured alpha male who has had one too many people tell him how good he is, and now refuses to listen to anything or anyone else.  It is clear that he wishes he had a son instead of a daughter.

The child, Ellie, appears androgynous.  She is silent, thoughtful and pale.  She wears pink and ties her hair, but still manages to look like a boy.  She is staring out the window, oblivious.

CUT TO:

INT. 1996 COMMODORE (MOVING) - EVENING

MOTHER
I told you we should have left an hour ago, when everyone else was leaving. Why do you always have to see one more thing after we’re ready to leave?

FATHER
Ellie appreciated it. Didn’t you mate?

MOTHER
We should have gone with everyone else. Why can’t you just be like everyone else for once?

The Father scowls.

MOTHER
Well I just hope we make it back alive, for your sake.

The Father makes a clicking noise with his tongue and exhales loudly through his nose.

There is a short pause, during which the Father exerts all of his concentration on the road to avoid the piercing gaze of his wife, which eventually subsides.  In the back, Ellie continues to stare out the window.

She is looking at the road kill on the side of the road flash past the car.  The mangled corpses of possums, echidnas, birds, and various other creatures slide past her vision.

FATHER
How’s it going back there mate?

Ellie is silent.

FATHER
Sweety? Ellie? Everything tip-top?

MOTHER
(interrupting)
It’s terrible the animals on the side of the road. They should really clean it up. Imagine if we were coming from France or somewhere like that? Imagine coming here and seeing this trash. It’s disgusting. We should call the ranger, Terry.

TERRY
(declaring to the world at large)
I don’t think they come up here very often. Besides, we wouldn’t get phone reception up here.

ELLIE
I think it’s sad.

TERRY
You’re right. Telstra should take the money I invested in them, get up off their arse and –

ELLIE
(interrupting)
The animals on the side of the road.

MOTHER
(patronising)
Why is it sad, sweetie?

ELLIE
Well, this is their home. It’s our cars that come through it.

TERRY
I don’t think that means we should be the ones dying. Is that what you’re saying mate?

MOTHER
There’s enough death on the roads without us wishing any more.

The mother stops short.  Ahead, there is a body lying in the middle of the road.  It’s a woman, maybe in her 30’s, with red hair.  She wears a pink and black floral dress.  Her body is deformed and twisted, the victim of a fresh car accident.  It was probably once quite voluptuous, quite attractive.

Terry stops the car sharply about 15 metres from the body.

TERRY
My god…

In shock, the family stares at the body.  The parents are taken aback, but Ellie looks on with faint curiosity.

TERRY
Stay here.

He switches off the ignition and gets out of the car. The mother and Ellie watch from the car.

CUT TO:

EXT. ROAD - EVENING

Terry advances with businesslike manner, but there is a hint of anxiety about him.  He squats beside the body.  His gaze looks along the body to her neck.  Tentatively, he reaches forward to touch the neck.

No pulse.  He leans back, satisfied.

Suddenly his daughter is behind him.

TERRY
(freaking out)
JESUS CHRIST! DON’T SNEAK UP ON ME LIKE THAT!

Ellie just looks at him.

TERRY
(softening a little)
Get back in the car mate. This lady isn’t getting it up any time soon. And get your mother over here.

Ellie looks at the body again.  She wants to keep looking, but the family hierarchy dominates and she goes to the car.

Terry looks around the bush.  The sun is setting.   There are a few noises – the animals are emerging.  Birds are flying back to their nests.  It will be dark soon.

MOTHER
(calling)
Terry!

Terry turns from the body and the awakening bush and walks towards the mother.  She is looking past him in horror at the body.

MOTHER
I can’t get too close to it. It is…?

TERRY
(giving his postmortem)
Yep, she’s dead. Happened recently too.

MOTHER
God…

TERRY
Look, we should call the police or something. I don’t think we’ll get reception, but we’ll try anyway. If we can’t get anyone, we’ll keep driving until we can or we reach a town. You’ve got the phone?

MOTHER
(still pretty shaken)
Yes. It’s in the car.

They return to the car.  The mother goes to the passenger side to find the phone.  Terry leans in to the car.

CUT TO:

INT. FAMILY CAR - EVENING

TERRY
(to Ellie)
How’s it going sweetie?

If the child was mysterious before, now she’s downright weird.  The sight of the body seems to have stimulated her, oddly.

ELLIE
Not bad, thank you.

TERRY
(a little uncomfortable with this answer)
Won’t be long now. We’re just trying to give the police a call.

ELLIE
(stating fact)
You won’t get reception.

TERRY
We’ll try anyway.

MOTHER
Here.

She hands him the phone.

TERRY
Cheers love.

He steps outside the car.

CUT TO:

EXT. ROADSIDE - EVENING

Terry dials the number, glancing back at his daughter.

There is no reception.

TERRY
Nothing. We’ll have to keep going. Everybody okay?

MOTHER
(unconvincing)
We’re okay.

TERRY
Okay. Let’s go. It won’t be too far ‘til the next town. Maybe twenty kilometres. We’ll tell the police and they’ll sort it out.

He gets in the car.

CUT TO:

INT. FAMILY CAR - EVENING

Terry turns the ignition key.  THE CAR DOESN’T START.

TERRY
Bugger!

MOTHER
What is it?

TERRY
Must be the bloody battery!

MOTHER
(frantically)
Turn the key!

TERRY
(angry)
I’m turning the bloody key woman and it’s not working, okay?! It must be the battery!
 
MOTHER
(pauses, panicking)
I’m not staying here in the dark with that body-

TERRY
Well we don’t have much choice do we! Are you going to walk through the dark in the bush! We’ll wait for someone to help. There’ll be someone soon.

They all stare at the body again for a moment.  It’s still there.

ELLIE
Who’s that?

A Figure approaches in silhouette.  It might be a ranger.

MOTHER
Maybe he can help us!

TERRY
(pauses)
Ellie, you were in the car the whole time?

ELLIE
Yes.

TERRY
Did you see anyone?

ELLIE
No.

TERRY
You sure?

ELLIE
Yes.

MOTHER
He can help us! Get out of the car Terry!

Ellie looks at the Figure with that familiar expression of half-curiosity.  Terry doesn’t want to get out… he can’t get out… he is paralysed!

CUT TO:

EXT. FAMILY CAR – EVENING

The Figure approaches the body deliberately.  The Figure appears to be a Ranger’s outfit, complete with broad-rimmed hat, but in the evening light it is impossible to make out any features. 

The Figure kneels to inspect the body, as Terry did a moment ago. 

The Figure rises and approaches the car, stopping about 10 metres from it.  The stance could be threatening.

Terry seems to be going through an intense psychological battle.  He knows that he should get out of the car, and he wants to, but something stops him.

The mother silently appeals to Terry, at the same time wondering - why the hell hasn’t he got out of the car?  She is suspicious of the figure, but does not understand or share Terry’s paralysis.

Ellie watches passively and curiously.  She feels fear, but for her this translates to a certain curiosity rather panic.

The figure stands there for about 10 seconds.  Eventually, the mother snaps.

MOTHER
(impatiently)
Terry! The man wants to help! I’m going to speak with him. We don’t want him to think we hit that woman!

Terry wants to reply to this statement but again this strange paralysis stops him.

The mother gets out of the car.  She walks over to the Figure, smiling in a maternal fashion.

From nowhere a finely crafted club, a similar size and shape to a baseball bat, appears in the Figure’s hand.  Suddenly, mechanically, he strikes the mother.  She falls instantly.

CUT TO:

INT. FAMILY CAR - EVENING

Terry inhales sharply in shock, and snaps out of his paralysis.  He tries to get out of the car but his seat belt restrains him.  He struggles with it for a moment.  In horror, Ellie watches her own mother beaten over the head again and again with the club.  She is not curious any more, but stunned, and traumatized.

Finally Terry gets the seatbelt off.

CUT TO:

EXT. ROAD - EVENING

Terry bursts from the car and sprints towards the Figure, who rises and moves away from his wife.

When Terry gets there he sees that his wife is well and truly dead.  There is a moment of grief and realization - then he hesitates.  Clearly he hasn’t thought past this point.

He looks to the Figure.  The Figure is watching him, waiting.  He looks back to the car and sees Ellie staring out.

He appears to make some sort of decision.

TERRY
(a little desperate)
Come on. Come on you arsehole. Come here.

Always facing the man, Terry stalks his way to the side of the road away from the car.

TERRY
Come on. Come on.

The Figure twists slowly, following Terry.

Mechanically, like some bizarre puppet, the Figure lifts the club above his head.  He runs at Terry.

Terry evades the first strike but gets caught on the back-swing.  A struggle ensues in which Terry is gradually dominated by the Figure.  He keeps trying to resist, but becomes weaker and weaker.

Finally he is beaten.  He looks at the figure through half-closed eyes. The Figure kneels, and raises his club for one last strike…

…and falls. Ellie has felled him from behind with an ordinary hammer.

Ellie looks down at her father. Despite avoiding the final killing blow, he is dead.  She looks over at her mother. She is also dead.

Ellie stands alone on the abandoned road, surrounded by her two dead parents and two unidentified bodies.

CUT TO:

INT. COUPLE’S CAR - EVENING

From around the corner, a car arrives on the scene. A young couple stares out from behind the wheel.  They look at the girl holding a bloody hammer, with four bodies around her.

CUT TO:

EXT. ROAD - EVENING

In the headlights, Ellie sets her pale face to them, passive, like a helpless animal.  Her eyes give no sign of sadness or anger or recognition.

FADE TO BLACK:

THE END
 
This script is subject to Australian Copyright Laws, which protect all documents where authorship can be proven. Any unauthorized copying, plagiarism, adaptation, or distribution without consulting the owner is illegal and will not be tolerated.

©  Richard Pettifer 2007

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This script is subject to Australian Copyright Laws, which protect all documents where authorship can be proven. Any unauthorized copying, plagiarism, adaptation, or distribution without consulting the owner is illegal and will not be tolerated. © Richard Pettifer 2007

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